Once Upon A Time
by Kikumaru
Summary: (Mankin AU) Once upon a time, in a small kingdom known as Manegold, there lived a dying king and his two sons...Yoh and Hao..


A/N: Shaman King doesn't belong to me. Plus, this isn't very romantic and silly like most of my others are. Which is weird? Considering its a fairy tale. ::shrugs::  
  
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Once upon a time, there was a small kingdom known as Manegold. In the center of this beautiful, happy kingdom, there was a tall castle. The stone towers reached high into the sky, where the maids quarters were kept. Inside this castle, there lived a dying king and his two sons, Hao, and Yoh.  
  
The sons were twins, almost identical in appearance, but as different as night and day. The eldest twin, by ten minutes and forty-two seconds (as he never let his younger brother forget), was beautiful in every way. Hao had rich auburn hair that he'd grown to his waist, and glittering, burnt sienna eyes. He'd always been considerably intelligent, gifted with sorcery as well as great strength and cunning. From a glance, he'd make one of the best kings that the kingdom had ever seen, even better than his father before him.  
  
However, he was known throughout the land to be very greedy for power. He wanted to rule the land of Manegold, as well as the neighboring kingdoms of Hamilton and Tzareil. He wanted to create an empire, taking over every single kingdom he could get his hands on. He wanted to rule all, rather than making sure his own kingdom was a happy and safe place to live.   
  
The younger son, Yoh, was like his twin in appearance, except for his hair. While Hao's hair was long and luxurious, Yoh's was short and choppy....cute, for lack of a better word. He looked more childish, wearing a true smile rather than an evil smirk. He had a reputation for being a little slow and a bit lazy, always wandering the village rather than spending time with his father and making suggestions.   
  
But, he was rumored to have a heart made of pure gold. He'd go out into the streets, finding peasants who were poor and on the verge of starvation, and then he'd give them money and food. He'd play with the children of the nobleman that came to visit the king, making them laugh and almost always, they'd leave with a smile.   
  
Their father was torn. While the law said that the eldest brother should be crowned king, Hao wasn't exactly the best of rulers. He didn't want to let the town fall to complete and utter misery, which it certainly would if Hao was left in charge to grow in power. But, did he really want to let Yoh become the king? He would make the right decisions concerning the city, but....what if there was to be a war? What if he was forced to fight? He really didn't think that Yoh wanted to kill anyone. But...if need be, if he were to keep his own town safe, he'd find a way. He'd most likely find a way to end the war peacefully without any bloodshed. So, he made a decision. Yoh would be crowned king at the ceremony at his funeral.  
  
With a weak smile, he sent a maid out to summon his two sons to his bedside to tell them of the news.  
  
Hao had come first, smiling smugly. "You called?"  
  
"Do you where your brother is?" His father looked at him, hoping that he would take the news well...  
  
"Out in the village," Hao said exasperatedly. He never understood his twin's fascination with common people. They didn't matter that much, they were just a bunch of poor peasants. "As usual." He added, snidely.   
  
"Again?" Hao nodded, studying his fingernails. "Could you send for him?" His father asked, hopefully.  
  
"What am I, his keeper?" He smirked, musing over his own joke for a half-second before he continued. He sighed and then got up. "Sure, father, I'll go get him. As usual." He didn't dislike his little brother, not too much. He just hated the fact that he associated with peasants and servants, instead of keeping to his own high-class standards. Not to mention, he got rather tired of everyone counting on him to keep his twin in line.   
  
Yoh, as it turned out, was actually not in the village, but sitting at the side of the lake dreamily looking into the water. He'd leaned over, watching the fish as they swam around with an excited expression on his face.  
  
"Look. Fish! " He gave an award winning smile to his brother, pointing down in the water. Hao peered over, and watched as the large orange fish swam over one another.   
  
"And...your point is?" He raised an eyebrow, wondering why Yoh had decided to come out here.   
  
"Its pretty," He said softly, looking up at Hao. "Don't you think? The water is so clear, I bet you could see right to the bottom if you were in the middle of it..."  
  
"You're not going to try."  
  
"I know I'm not. But I bet you could." Yoh grinned again.  
  
"Why aren't you up in the servant's quarters with what's-his-face? Or in the village?"  
  
"Manta," He corrected Hao. "Is busy. Besides. Sometimes I like to be out here. Its comfy."   
  
"Mmhmm." Hao decided not to question how on earth Yoh would prefer sitting in the grass to look at a lake to watching it from one of the many towers. Instead, he sat down next to his little brother. "Father wants to see us."  
  
"I don't want to go," Yoh said, quiet all of a sudden.  
  
"Why not?" Hao inquired with a smile.   
  
"I don't feel comfortable there. He's sick, big brother. I don't want to be there and just watch him die." Yoh stared out into the mountains in the distance. It seemed scary to see him look sad, Hao noticed. Yoh was almost always happy and carefree.  
  
"But he wants to see you."   
  
"If I have to." Yoh gave a small half-smile and then got up, dusting off his backside where he'd been laying in the grass, and walked to the castle. Hao followed his twin, watching him with curiousity. 


End file.
